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Types of the Argumentative Paragraph.
Types of the Argumentative Paragraph. Argumentative paragraphs are of the same types as the expository ; that is, the coordinate, the subor¬dinate, the mixed, and the one-sentence types. The only difference in organization between the exposi¬tory and the argumentative paragraph is that in the latter there is a cementing word expressed or • implied which unites the proofs to the proposition which they establish. This is the word for or some of its synonyms — because, as, since. Argumentative Paragraph-type I. The following outline of a portion of Burke's speech on Conciliation with America illustrates the paragraph in which the various proofs are in coOrdinate rela¬tion to one another : Proposition.—The liberty-loving character of the Ameri cans demands a policy of conciliation: For (a), The American idea of liberty, derived as it is from the English idea, centers about the prin¬ciple that taxation must be levied by the repre sentatives of the people. For (b), In the American form of government the power of the representatives of the people is either supreme or very weighty. For ©, The spirit of liberty in America is fostered by the Puritan religion which prevails in the North. For (d), Race pride in the Southern slave owners makes them jealous of their liberty, for wherever slavery prevails freedom is to the slave owner "not only an enjoyment but a kind of rank." For (e), The study of law in America enables its legislators, the greater number of whom are lawyers, to augur misgovernment at a distance. The following paragraph also illustrates the codr dinate type : It is vehemently maintained by some writers of the present day that Elizabeth persecuted neither Papists nor Puritans as such, and that the severe measures which she occasionally adopted were dictated, not by re¬ligious intolerance, but by political necessity The title of the Queen, they say, was annulled by the Pope ; her throne was given to another ; her subjects were incited to rebellion; her life was menaced ; every Catholic was bound in conscience to be a traitor ; it was therefore against traitors, not against Catholics, that the penal laws were enacted. —THOMAS. BABII(GTON MACAULAY, Essay on Hallam's Constitutional History. SucoEsnoNs.—"What are the coordinate elements in this para¬graph. Prove that the wordfor is implied each time. Exercises I. Write, according to the first type of the argu¬mentative paragraph, on any one of the following subjects : i. Inter-school debates are beneficial. 2. Girls' athletics should be encouraged. 3. Every boy should learn a trade. 4- An editorial for the school paper. II. Write a Paragraph on each of the above subjects refuting every point that you make in your direct proof in the first exercise. • 271. Argumentative Paragraph-type II. The fol lowing outline of another portion of Burke's speech on Conciliation with America illustrates the second or subordinate type of the argumentative paragraph. Proposition—England should secure peace by conciliation: For I. Of the three possible methods of dealing with America — removing the causes of the love of freedom, prosecuting it as criminal, or complying with it as necessary — the last is the only one practicable, for A. It is difficult to remove the causes of the love of freedom, for i. It is hard to change the conditions which exist in America, for a. It is impossible to check the growth in population, for a'. There is plenty of unsettled land. SUGGESTIONS.-It is, of course, not necessary to express the word for every time. The mind can often make the connection between two sentences in causal relation without having the causal word expressed. 272. Argumentative Paragraph-type III. example of the third or mixed type of the argu¬mentative paragraph, in which the proofs of the proposition stand in both the subordinate and cotir¬dinate relation to one another as in the correspond¬ing expository paragraph (§192), is given in the fol¬lowing outline : I. England should yield to the demands of the American colonies, for A. Conditions in America require this policy, for i. A narrow policy is unwise in dealing with so large a population. • B. England's policy in dealing with America, up to this time, has been that of a wise and salutary neglect. This policy is best for America, for i. She has prospered in commerce. z. She has prospered in her agriculture. II. England should not use force in dealing with America, for A. The use of force is temporary. B. The use of force is uncertain, for i. Force failing, no hope of conciliation is left. C. The use of force is wasteful, for i. It consumes the strength of both countries. D. England has no precedent for the use of force in dealing with her colonies. Exercises I. Write a paragraph on each of the following subjects according to the third type discussed above : i. Commercial courses should be introduced into public high schools. 2. The elective system in secondary schools is to be commended. II. Write a paragraph on each of the subjectq suggested in the first exercise, refuting the first paragraph you wrote.